36 Interview by Ginny Farrell


Simon Cox


After nearly 25 years in the Royal Navy, Simon Cox has travelled the world, commanded everything from minehunters to aircraft carriers and served everywhere from the Arctic to the Middle East. Now he’s back in the West Country as the new Captain of Britannia Royal Naval College - a job he describes as one of the best in the Navy. Ginny Farrell was invited to the Captain’s Office at BRNC to find out more about Capt Cox, who was awarded an OBE in 2022 for his outstanding leadership and performance in the Middle East, and as the Commander of the 2nd Mine Countermeasures Squadron.


T


here can’t be many jobs where the one-minute commute comes with


expansive views across the stunning River Dart estuary, your workplace has produced generations of outstanding naval leaders, and your neighbour is a town with a particularly strong sense of its own identity. For Simon Cox, it’s all part of the


attraction. Te new Captain of Britannia


Royal Naval College (BRNC) has enjoyed a career that has taken him around the world but the West Country has always remained home. “Dartmouth’s pretty impressive,”


Simon said. “I’m not from a million miles away. Home for me is Cornwall, it’s where I’ve spent most of my life.” He is clearly impressed by the


town and what its community manages to achieve. “I can’t think of many other towns


with a population of 6,000 that punches as heavily as Dartmouth does in terms of its ability to deliver. You get a lot of incredibly talented people here who oſten have a little


bit more time and capacity than many others. Te events, culture and sense of community in Dartmouth are super impressive.” It is, he admits, a privilege to


command BRNC. But Simon sees his


“Outside of commanding a ship at sea this is the best job in the Navy, bar none,”


new role as being about considerably more than the spectacular location. “Outside of commanding a ship


at sea this is the best job in the Navy, bar none,” he says. “And it just happens to be in a stunning location with a really special relationship with Dartmouth, the South Hams and the wider region. It’s part of the college’s unique selling point.” Tat relationship between


BRNC and the town it overlooks is something Simon is keen to preserve. Te college has been in Dartmouth for 126 years and has trained tens of thousands of naval


officers from Britain and around the world. Today, more than 20 different nations are represented among those training there. “Why do people from around the


world send their brightest and best to be trained here? And why do we hold BRNC in such high regard?” Simon asks. “Te history of BRNC is lovely,


with its connection to the royal family and the great military leaders it has produced, and it’s that combination which makes it pretty magical.” Simon’s own route to Dartmouth


began rather further west, on a traditional family farm on Bodmin Moor. “As a youngster I have great


memories visiting some of the ships at Devonport Dockyard,” he says. “Tere were loads of visits to Navy Days and Air Shows, and the array warships and helicopters definitely lit the spark.” He also loved sport, particularly


rugby and cricket, and says the importance of being part of a team has always appealed to him.


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